'Pakistan team in a transition' - chief selector

Pakistan chief selector, Iqbal Qasim, said that the team was still undergoing a rebuilding process and what was perceived as an inconsistent selection policy was actually a "tactical move" to test young talent. While admitting that cricket in Pakistan was facing a crisis, Qasim said that the selectors were looking at grooming cricketers to help the side overcome a transition phase.

"Realistically, we do not have a quality pool of reserve players," Qasim said in an exclusive interview with ESPNcricinfo. "Most of the spots within the playing XI are not fixed and players are not doing enough to retain their place. We are giving them opportunities, but they have to raise the standard of their game and grab their chances. A good player doesn't wait for the second chance and we need players who can fill in for the best players at every slot."

Qasim said that handling a transition phase was difficult for all teams in cricket, irrespective of their past performances. "It happens everywhere, even Australia" he said. "We are trying to look for young cricketers, but the situation in domestic cricket is not encouraging. Critics talk about the inconsistent selection but the other side of the argument is that we have to try different combinations until we find the best prospects for Pakistan. Our job as selectors is to pick the best player and it is the player's job to hold on to his place by performing well."

Qasim's remarks about a transition phase come soon after Pakistan's disappointing tour to South Africa. They lost all matches of the three-Test series and while their performance improved in the one-dayers, it still wasn't good enough for them to win the series. The re-emergence of Mohammad Irfan, who still needs to work on his fitness, was the only positive from the tour.

The team has been known for world-class fast bowlers, such as Sarfaraz Nawaz, Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis and Shoaib Akhtar. Pakistan have been struggling in recent times. Since Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir, the Pakistan selectors have brought in 10 bowlers and only Junaid Khan and Irfan have established themselves as long-term prospects.

Similarly, in the batting line-up, the selectors have failed to find a prolific batsman in the mould of Mohammad Yousuf, although dozens of batsmen have been given chances. Two youngsters, Umar Akmal and Asad Shafiq, have shown potential but they are yet to win a permanent place in the side.

Kamran Akmal has handled wicket-keeping responsibilities over the last five years, even as the selectors have tried Zulqarnain Haider, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Mohammad Salman and Adnan Akmal. Kamran is considered the best wicket-keeper batsman for Pakistan in limited-overs cricket but the Test slot is still unsettled. The selectors recently identified Mohammad Rizwan from Peshawar as a prospect but the youngster is still waiting for a chance to prove his case.

"We want stability in a player's performance so that we can look at the long term," he said. "Unfortunately, they lack consistency and are neither helping us nor themselves. We have a great history of producing world-class players who ruled the world. We have to be patient and sooner or later, we will definitely have a greater depth of quality players in our system again. We have marked future prospects like Haris Sohail, Junaid Khan and Ehsan Adil and we are looking for quality players to fill each slot."

Qasim said his role was limited to selecting players, not developing them. He also said that the lack of international cricket in Pakistan was a setback. "Players aren't thriving. Playing domestic cricket is okay but they need exposure to international cricket at the Under-19 and A-team levels. This is how a player is developed for international cricket. We are picking a raw player who may have performed at the domestic level but has never been tested against quality teams around the world before being selected for the national team."

Pakistan are currently ranked No. 5 in ICC Test rankings, No. 6 in ODIs and No. 4 in T20Is. Their highest position in Tests came in 2007, when they made it to No. 3. Qasim was reluctant to predict whether the team would reach the No. 1 ranking . "I can't say whether we can achieve the No. 1 position with the players we have in the team, but I can be optimistic about it."

Pakistan recently dropped senior batsman Younis Khan and had also dropped Shahid Afridi from the ODIs in India last year. While Qasim said dropping a senior member was painful, there was no culture of a rotation policy in Pakistan.

"It doesn't fit here as players are insecure, they never would want to be rested," Qasim said. "The present crop of players are in rebuilding process and we are trying to form a good combination. We are in fact in no position to rotate players as the phenomena isn't feasible in our culture. Players start obsessing about their place rather than giving their best."

The selectors are currently facing the challenge of trimming down the 30-member list of probables for the Champions Trophy to 15. The same squad is expected to play the ODI series against Scotland and Ireland in May. Form and fitness are the major concerns for the selectors.

Like many who have posted here, I too believe that Mr. Qasim's comments are anemic. From afar, it appears that the team suffers from Inadequate international practice, Internal squabbles, Possible administrative interference, Weak leadership, Too many tweaks and an obvious Lack of commitment. IF Pakistan wishes to rank higher in the world of cricket, the batsmen need to keep their chins up and their heads and focus on winning the game. There are far too many wild shots being attempted and wild balls being bowled. Ajmal is the one disciplined bowler on the team; Irfan needs guidance. My advice: get a hold of Wasim Akram and Mohammad Yusuf as bowling and batting coaches respectively. Pay them reasonably well and Give them the respect they deserve. Finally, find some sensible ex-cricketers to manage the team. it is a shame to see such a brilliant cricketing nation playing like Zimbabwe. In the post-match comments, please learn from Misbah.

keptalittlelow
on April 15, 2013, 12:40 GMT

So much for the cry "there is no shortage of talent in Pakistan", I can't understand who they tried to fool? Yes it was great to see Pakistan beat the No.1 team England 3-0 in UAE, but it was down to two bowlers who were outstanding; even then the batting was poor. Pakistan needs to address the 'lack of talent' issue very seriously by abolishing politics from the game, and the high salaried PCB officials doing some real hard work for Pakistan Cricket. We have not found one quality batsman in the last ten years, quite frankly Nasir Jamshed, Azhar Ali, Asad Shafiq are all mediocres, they are no Inzamam, Yusuf or Yunus, PCB must take the blame for this.

Crick_Expert
on April 13, 2013, 0:42 GMT

PAK should have 3 different team for T20/ODI and TEST format, that it. PCB should give chance to young talented players first in T20 team then ODI. Keep experience players in TEST team only. All team CAPT should give free hands to pick best players for their side.
TEST TEAM CAPT-Misbah
ODI TEAM CAPT-Afridi
T20 TEAM CAPT-Hafeez

Smiling
on April 12, 2013, 10:55 GMT

Internal squabbling? None!!! It is simply politics interfering. Get the politicians/selectors who have no idea about cricket out and that means the business men who are interested in votes only. Pakistan have an awesome talent, in the young players coming up, in the 'district' teams...give cricket back to the cricket brains..but can you ever leave the egos out? For goodness sake, give cricket back to cricket everwhere and especially in Pakistan!

factoryard
on April 11, 2013, 17:45 GMT

I'm an ardent pakistan cricket fan from the west indies. A lot of people has reasons to give why paskitan isn't performing to their best. Why don't you guys try making more lively pitches in pakistan. From the scores i see it's like anyone is making runs there.Good bowlers even ajmal is not looking good there. If the pitches are lively, yes it would be hard for the batsmen but they will get the right training for when they travel.

Saady1195
on April 11, 2013, 14:47 GMT

A selectors job is to find a quality player from the domestic circuit and put it him in the National Squad.I totally disagree with Iqbal Qasim's statement that Pakistan is not producing quality players.Sir,please look at the performances in the domestic cricket first,before releasing such a disappointing statement.There is this kid Hussain Talat,who is only 16 years old and is averaging 98+ in the ongoing domestic One day cup.We have so many youngsters performing (including Ahmed Shehzad,Harris Sohail,Mansoor Amjad,Sharjeel Khan,Umer Amin,Hammad Azam) but we still go with the oldies.And please stop blaming our youngsters as it will only hamper their performance.
Regards,
A true Pakistani Cricket Team's fan

Pakistan cricket selection committee and PCB itself will never amend its ways unless a cricketing professional who has the leadership abilities takes over to administer, sad after Imran Khan there hasnt been any leadership demonstrated both on and off the field. I'm shocked to read the comments of pin-pointing cricketers on who should be in the test and one day side. Rather the focus should be on the cricketing format and who suits the style of play.
Again comment on my vivid memory of Sir Geoffrey Boycott commenting in ESPN or Star Sports 2000 on difference of test and one day format,and each player should be chosen on his playing merit, only then he gave example of shahid afridi not suitable for test format, rather than people commenting on their 11, and also having a different side for both the formats, now there are three formats to chose from and players should be selected and groomed for it, rather than giving them a chance to prove themselves and ponder which formats suits them

Hassan_U
on April 11, 2013, 10:08 GMT

It saddens me to see how things are. Waqar was trying to build the team from Saga of 2010 but he came across EGO of Afridi. If the board was strong then Afridi should never been allowed back.

You have Rashid Latif who shows 100% passion for team but he is not allowed near PCB

We have Moin Khan and his Lahore Badshah were true T20 force yet again he is not in PCB.

Aqib Javed....during his team a bowling coach...Waqar and Aqib were getting the team back in to its tracks. Both had to go.

Yousuf was on top of his game but then thrown out for what reason.

Ijaz Ahmed said he although played 150+ ODI he always felt he may be dropped and had to perform. And he said now player play few game and think there never be dropped. So True you were.

:(

mtalhas
on April 11, 2013, 9:48 GMT

@ getsetgopk..agree with you. I will add names of afridi and malik as well. I cant understand the logic of adding these two allrounders who cant bowl and take up the spot in middle order without contributing anything, specially when there is hafeez who is also in the same category by the way. I dont recall if currently any team is playing 3 mediocre allrounders, in fact it hardly happened in Pakistan before. Azhar Ali should be promoted as captain (he seems to be the next best man after Misbah).

@ Hassan_U..agree with you. I wish we could have the power house of 90s in running the affairs but it seems to be far from reality unless the old lads of PCB are willing to let this happen.

ArmChairUmpire
on April 10, 2013, 21:19 GMT

Like many who have posted here, I too believe that Mr. Qasim's comments are anemic. From afar, it appears that the team suffers from Inadequate international practice, Internal squabbles, Possible administrative interference, Weak leadership, Too many tweaks and an obvious Lack of commitment. IF Pakistan wishes to rank higher in the world of cricket, the batsmen need to keep their chins up and their heads and focus on winning the game. There are far too many wild shots being attempted and wild balls being bowled. Ajmal is the one disciplined bowler on the team; Irfan needs guidance. My advice: get a hold of Wasim Akram and Mohammad Yusuf as bowling and batting coaches respectively. Pay them reasonably well and Give them the respect they deserve. Finally, find some sensible ex-cricketers to manage the team. it is a shame to see such a brilliant cricketing nation playing like Zimbabwe. In the post-match comments, please learn from Misbah.

keptalittlelow
on April 15, 2013, 12:40 GMT

So much for the cry "there is no shortage of talent in Pakistan", I can't understand who they tried to fool? Yes it was great to see Pakistan beat the No.1 team England 3-0 in UAE, but it was down to two bowlers who were outstanding; even then the batting was poor. Pakistan needs to address the 'lack of talent' issue very seriously by abolishing politics from the game, and the high salaried PCB officials doing some real hard work for Pakistan Cricket. We have not found one quality batsman in the last ten years, quite frankly Nasir Jamshed, Azhar Ali, Asad Shafiq are all mediocres, they are no Inzamam, Yusuf or Yunus, PCB must take the blame for this.

Crick_Expert
on April 13, 2013, 0:42 GMT

PAK should have 3 different team for T20/ODI and TEST format, that it. PCB should give chance to young talented players first in T20 team then ODI. Keep experience players in TEST team only. All team CAPT should give free hands to pick best players for their side.
TEST TEAM CAPT-Misbah
ODI TEAM CAPT-Afridi
T20 TEAM CAPT-Hafeez

Smiling
on April 12, 2013, 10:55 GMT

Internal squabbling? None!!! It is simply politics interfering. Get the politicians/selectors who have no idea about cricket out and that means the business men who are interested in votes only. Pakistan have an awesome talent, in the young players coming up, in the 'district' teams...give cricket back to the cricket brains..but can you ever leave the egos out? For goodness sake, give cricket back to cricket everwhere and especially in Pakistan!

factoryard
on April 11, 2013, 17:45 GMT

I'm an ardent pakistan cricket fan from the west indies. A lot of people has reasons to give why paskitan isn't performing to their best. Why don't you guys try making more lively pitches in pakistan. From the scores i see it's like anyone is making runs there.Good bowlers even ajmal is not looking good there. If the pitches are lively, yes it would be hard for the batsmen but they will get the right training for when they travel.

Saady1195
on April 11, 2013, 14:47 GMT

A selectors job is to find a quality player from the domestic circuit and put it him in the National Squad.I totally disagree with Iqbal Qasim's statement that Pakistan is not producing quality players.Sir,please look at the performances in the domestic cricket first,before releasing such a disappointing statement.There is this kid Hussain Talat,who is only 16 years old and is averaging 98+ in the ongoing domestic One day cup.We have so many youngsters performing (including Ahmed Shehzad,Harris Sohail,Mansoor Amjad,Sharjeel Khan,Umer Amin,Hammad Azam) but we still go with the oldies.And please stop blaming our youngsters as it will only hamper their performance.
Regards,
A true Pakistani Cricket Team's fan

Pakistan cricket selection committee and PCB itself will never amend its ways unless a cricketing professional who has the leadership abilities takes over to administer, sad after Imran Khan there hasnt been any leadership demonstrated both on and off the field. I'm shocked to read the comments of pin-pointing cricketers on who should be in the test and one day side. Rather the focus should be on the cricketing format and who suits the style of play.
Again comment on my vivid memory of Sir Geoffrey Boycott commenting in ESPN or Star Sports 2000 on difference of test and one day format,and each player should be chosen on his playing merit, only then he gave example of shahid afridi not suitable for test format, rather than people commenting on their 11, and also having a different side for both the formats, now there are three formats to chose from and players should be selected and groomed for it, rather than giving them a chance to prove themselves and ponder which formats suits them

Hassan_U
on April 11, 2013, 10:08 GMT

It saddens me to see how things are. Waqar was trying to build the team from Saga of 2010 but he came across EGO of Afridi. If the board was strong then Afridi should never been allowed back.

You have Rashid Latif who shows 100% passion for team but he is not allowed near PCB

We have Moin Khan and his Lahore Badshah were true T20 force yet again he is not in PCB.

Aqib Javed....during his team a bowling coach...Waqar and Aqib were getting the team back in to its tracks. Both had to go.

Yousuf was on top of his game but then thrown out for what reason.

Ijaz Ahmed said he although played 150+ ODI he always felt he may be dropped and had to perform. And he said now player play few game and think there never be dropped. So True you were.

:(

mtalhas
on April 11, 2013, 9:48 GMT

@ getsetgopk..agree with you. I will add names of afridi and malik as well. I cant understand the logic of adding these two allrounders who cant bowl and take up the spot in middle order without contributing anything, specially when there is hafeez who is also in the same category by the way. I dont recall if currently any team is playing 3 mediocre allrounders, in fact it hardly happened in Pakistan before. Azhar Ali should be promoted as captain (he seems to be the next best man after Misbah).

@ Hassan_U..agree with you. I wish we could have the power house of 90s in running the affairs but it seems to be far from reality unless the old lads of PCB are willing to let this happen.

Hassan_U
on April 11, 2013, 9:24 GMT

Players like Umar Akmal yet to learn how to fully control his innings. and not throw his wickets away.

There is talent there but currently there are too many players who thing no matter what they will always be in playing 11.

Izni was right when he said those who are selectors only have played handful games. Its time to get players like Akram, Inzi, Yousuf, Waqar, Moin, Aqib back into PCB. They were the sprit of 90s

on April 11, 2013, 8:35 GMT

Nothing prblem with International team but there is lack of talent in Domestic Cricket of Pakistan,
Iqbal Qasim is not as bad as the people think, he has no young talent to pick up at international level so he stick with the the experienced men.
Lack of International cricket in PAKISTAN also not helping them to produce a good young product!

getsetgopk
on April 11, 2013, 8:30 GMT

The word "Transition" has become a fashionable way of saying "Im incompetent". This interview that our Chief selector has given seems all over the place. The team is not in transition as there are still some senior players in the team playing. The team was in tatters rather when Salman Butt, Amir and Asif sold themselves out and left the team in the worst position imaginable. But it has been three years since then and we have moved along nicely from that episode. What Mr. Qasim needs to answer is why we keep playing one keeper in one series and another one in the next. Adnan Akmal played well against Poms in UAE series which was replaced by Sarfaraz for no apparent reason. How come Tanvir made it to the final XI in the 2nd test with a speed of 117Kph? Mr. Qasim needs to get out of his cozy air conditioned room once in a while and see what's going on out there. Even this interview is ill prepared, most of what he's saying is wayward and makes little sense.

S.h.a.d.a.b
on April 11, 2013, 7:32 GMT

Pakistan team is in transtion since 2003. We are listening since 2003. Good keep it up.

Syed_imran_abbas
on April 11, 2013, 6:42 GMT

Iqbal Qasim is one the worst selector i have ever seen. Mohsin Hassan was doing great job even under Mr Butt's troubled time. Pakistan has no shortage of talent but yeah Pakistan getting hurt by indian politics. No international cricket in Pakistan is putting them behind. You gota give a chance to young guys. A team should be a blend of experience and young talent. my team for CT would be :

Dump Gul, Hafeez and Younus khan from the test side once and forever. I think this much should be crystal clear to Mr. Qasim sahib by now. Lets earn your corn for once and make the right decision. Gul has been in the team for a whole decade and what has he done, apart from sporadic sparks of brilliance, nothing of note in tests. Same goes for Hafeez, apart from scoring against BD and Zim, what else has he achieved? Two innings of Hafeez, one in England and the other in UAE are the only two innings I can think of, there is nothing more to it. He's been given plenty of chances, its not working, we need a solid bat up the order, hafeez is anything but solid against quality attacks. You dont need to ponder too much over Hafeez any longer, its a waste of time and a fruitless exercise, mark my words. Promote Azhar Ali up the order. Younus khan has come to the end too, he's had a very good run, but now its time to give Haris sohail a decent chance. Mr. chief selector time for talk is over.

imranmujtaba
on April 11, 2013, 3:16 GMT

How can you rebuild if you have poor selection committee, poor captain, 2 players approaching 40 and youngster don't get chance to bat?!??!? Please explain?

GRVJPR
on April 11, 2013, 1:48 GMT

At least someone in pakistan has guts to say that 'We don't have a talent' and that is the truth. Pakistan is not a good sports country at all. They loose in every tournament. Their players are getting arrogant as well especially Afridi.

on April 10, 2013, 22:02 GMT

Pakistan is Already good at t20 because of Hafeez captanicity. In Test and Odi Pakistan is weak. Hafeez or Afridi should be captain in Odi. Afridi should be sent opener in all match including T20 and Odi. Beacuse he is Good hitter If he is sent opener then it is power play and two fielders are outside the circle and Afridi can hit where ever he wants and hafeez should come at 2nd or 3rd down

Hassanmir
on April 10, 2013, 21:54 GMT

Just wondering why would the chief selector say that. Its your job to find talent sir. The simplest thing for you is to say that there is none.
Well if there is no talent then how come Harris Sohail avegrages more than 100. He played in the CL for SS and won them a lost match under tough conditions. This is exactly what that arrogant Afridi was saying in his interview that he does not have replacement. Younis , Afridi , Gul have no future ( Gul is fine in 20). We have destroyed the mind of our most talented batsman ( Umar Akmal) by playing him as a hitter ( Mr. Afridi's captaincy has to do with that and Mr. Misbah followed ). Shafiq and Azhar ALi have to place in ODI and T20 so please dont mess with them !!!
Harris Sohail Umar Amin , Ahmed Shahzad( Batting talent)
Hasan Raza, Abdur Rehman, ( Spin Talent)
We already have Gul, Junaid Khan, Irfan, Wahab Riza etc. in our fast bowling pool.

on April 10, 2013, 21:19 GMT

Quality players will come only if good pitches r made in domestic cricket ..so think qasim sahab .......

octopus1
on April 10, 2013, 21:16 GMT

Nasir Jamshed and Ahmed Shahzad are very very fine fine palyers. Ahmed Shahzad in particular is a brilliant fielder too, he is lightening fast in the field and needs little more time to develop. I have seen this guy play and i have been immensley impressed with his talentl. Inshallah they will both do well but they musn't wate too many chances or they will become history.

tirchi_topi
on April 10, 2013, 21:13 GMT

Where is Fawad Alam ? 3 test with an average above 40, 27 ODI with an average of 37 and a first class average of 55 and List A average of 42. What does he have to do to get a proper run at test cricket ? Asad Shafiq is good ( first class average of less than 40 ) and umer akmal has an average of 48 in First class cricket. As long as favoritism, lobbies and politics of Karachi and Lahore keep on playing out in the National setup, there never will be a quality pool of reserve players. It will always be someone connected to the right people who get a chance, not the ones who have preformed day in , day out at the national level.

Desihungama
on April 10, 2013, 20:34 GMT

I respectfully disagree with Mr. Qasim. The problem is self created by choosing wrong players for the wrong formats. Imran Nazi, Umar Gul, playing Tests and ODis. Wrong move. They are twenty20 players with business in longer version of the game. Likewise, why has Asad Shafiq played twenty20's when he is clearly a longer version player. PCB needs to identify players according to their strengths and play them then format suits them and then develop a bench.

Nadeem1976
on April 10, 2013, 19:36 GMT

cricket is moving fast and pakistani team is not. we don't have home series, we are not allowed to play in IPL so how come we can grow new young talent.

then thanks to Mazher majeed we lost two of the best bowlers in Pakistan team. Due to politics we lost Mohammad Yousaf in test cricket.

Our captain is boring as hell. Give captaincy to some pathan and may be he brings energy to team. We played in good in WC 2011 under afridi but Misbah is so defensive.

Warm_Coffee
on April 10, 2013, 19:34 GMT

I really like this young spinner Raza Hasan. A genuine left arm spinner in the Pakistan line-up will make their bowling even stronger. Batting needs a lot of work though too many starts but not making them into massive scores consistently.

on April 10, 2013, 19:20 GMT

rubbish comments from the chief selectors. You dont select so many untested bowlers in one series. Pakistan has a settled unit until the series and now Qasim is saying these comments just to avoid the blame for his amazing selections. There shouldnt be any panic in the ranks. Team has done reasonably well. Against SA in v difficult conditions, every team has struggled. Pakistan was more than competitive in a test match in which the conditions was supportive for all. Even with the same team Pakistan is definitely going to test SA in UAE later in the year and the same chief selector will take all the credit for good team performance then.

on April 10, 2013, 19:11 GMT

we are hearing this since 2003 wc , our team is going through building process , the biggest joke on earth , we have players like imran farhat , shoiab malik , shahid afridi , younis khan in team n we call this building process , the main problem in our team is injustice , how can they put 3 new fast bowlers against a team like S africa n then when will be kick out shahid afiridi n shoiab malik , a player like hammad azam is out of team for so long

on April 10, 2013, 19:07 GMT

I don't know why Zulqurnain was deopped, he always performed whenever given a chance, the only thing is Akmal Bros have a strong lobby and they never allow any other batsman/wkt keeper to stay at 5th and 6th position. we don't have replacement of Abdul Razzaq and Afridi yet..... and most of coaches of domestic and club level teams dis-courage the approach of pinch hitting.... they wanted strong defense in their students.

on April 10, 2013, 18:50 GMT

Iqbal qasim you are wrong sir.I believe we have so many players that we can make different teams for T20,ODI and Tests. Qasim needs to be send home.why we select younis khan in T20 and ODI.Why we still try imran farhat and shoaib.why not giving chance to Haris and umer akmal and shehzad.our problem is not bowling.we have 4 spinners ajmal,rehman,hafiz and hassan raza. we have junaid and wahab and irfan and umer gul.Mr chief selector our problem is batting.wake up!!!!!!!!!!

totally agree with rising team. similraly some of the fans echoed a truth regarding giving too many chances to to nonperforming players[malik,gul, afridi, kamran]..selectors need to bring hammad azam, babar azam etc in the national side and let them flourish!!!.....look what india did. pujara, kohli, sharma etc

on April 10, 2013, 17:59 GMT

nasir jamshed is quality of product but i think he is confused he needs some incouragement from bating coach and on tha other hand ahmaed shehzad is also available they also should give him chance. there are lots of players but if pcb understand the situation under cool and calm environment

batting medium pace allrounder: hammad or any 1 else but in UK you dont need malik & afridi as spinners.

Medium pace allrounder gives them option to include 1 more batsman as he can fill in 3rd seamers slot.

then junaid/ajmal/irafan and 1 more whab or gul or cheema.

TheRisingTeam
on April 10, 2013, 17:32 GMT

Pakistan are a very talented team so no need to worry since most other teams are in a transition. Also forget about the ranking tables with the amount of games Pakistan plays compared to the English or Australians or India, even if they win all their allocated matches still won't be good enough to achieve a number 1 ranking which is why Cricket rankings don't tell the whole story and is flawed.

on April 10, 2013, 17:31 GMT

transition means including new players in playing 11. whereas what we are doing, if a youngster not performing, we are replacing him with old tested and flop players.

Yonas/malik/afridi/gul & imran farhat should be out now immediately. with misbah/kamran following them in few months.

instead of these they should bring new players. and specially a batting meium pace allrounder and at least 2/3 batsman umar/asad/umar amin/haris sohail/ ahmed shehzad/ nasir jamshed/babar.

on April 10, 2013, 17:26 GMT

what kind of transition is this that for india series afridi was dropped, picked for SA series whereas he didnt do anything in domestic circuit between india tour and SA tour?

Malik if playing as a batsman , then we can have a proper batsman, if he is allrounder then he doesnt bowl much, Younas now dropped. Hafeez should bat down the order he is not good vs moving ball. misbah has good SA series & domestic but at times very slow.

Umar gul is still inconsistent 1 good performance and 10 bad.

pakistan failed for many years now to find a good medium pace batting allrounder. they only tested 1 hammad azam & then dropped him with out any wrong. and moved to packing 4 spinners in team.

pakistan transition period seems an eternity. before being beaten 3-0 in sa, pak showed signs of improving but they went back to their old self nowadays.

Rauf_khan
on April 10, 2013, 16:54 GMT

Yes He is Right little bit because We don't have a best reserve players i thing Youngster don't have that kind of Potential that upto international level even our new players like Umar Akmal, Junaid khan, and some other

Stark62
on April 10, 2013, 16:24 GMT

"Realistically, we do not have a quality pool of reserve players" That is absolute tosh!!

Pak have two young batsmen in FC cricket (Harris and Alam), who have better FC averages than both Younis and Misbah but yet, they aren't getting selected.

The quality in reserve, is the best Pak have had in years but unfortunately, the selectors are very, very biased and have their favourites.

my suggestion is select 20 players for a year and tell them you 11 are the fix player and remain are reserve. at least give them chance for 10 matches or more give them some confidence that they can prove their self.

Dear Mr Qasim you are the chief selector of Pakistan cricket team and you think you do not have new talent in Pakistan like Australia in domestic cricket.. that look so funny then for what you are taking the salary. I am a common person and i keep an eye on domestic players regularly as well and i think Pakistan still have lot of back up in all three formats you can make three teams and i am telling you the names following:
Sharjeel khan , Shoib Ahmed Minhas, Harris Suhail, Shoib Maqsood l, Rizwan Ahmed, Fawad Alam , Muhammad Rizwan (wicket keeper), Maqbool Ahmed (wicket keeper) Asad Ali (Fast Bowler), Ehsan Adil (fast bowler), Zulfeqar Babar (left arm spinner), Sadaf Hussain (left arm fast bowler), Akbar ur Rehman (All rounder). Umar Waheed, Azhar Ali, Asad Shafiq, Hasan Mehmood (spinner), Hammad Azam (All rounder), Khurrum Manzoor, Zia ul Haq, Sami Aslam, Mansoor Amjad, Bilawal Bhatti, Asid Ali, Hussain Talat, Nasir Malik and lot more and most of them players are under 25 ages..

Omarrz
on April 10, 2013, 15:38 GMT

Pakistan has to invest in raw talent at grass root level. I am talking about the age of 9-10. Groom those kids and keep grooming until they reach 16-17. You cannot change a player's technique if he is already 20+.

Dannymania
on April 10, 2013, 15:01 GMT

he is not right in anything he said.He thinks we,the cricket followers in pakistan,are a bunch of stupid people who'll just believe anything he utters!
Umar gul,misbah,shoaib malik,afridi and kamran akmal have been wasting seats in the pakistani team for a long time.All the success has come from the likes of Azhar Ali,Umar Akmal,Asad Shafiq,Junaid khan,Irfan,Aizaz Cheema(Who disappeared without performing badly,somehow!),Saeed ajmal(Who could be called new),Abdur Rehman,Nasir Jamshed and so many other NEW players!
Why is he selecting Misbah,Gul,Malik,Afridi and Kamran when clearly they lose pakistan more matches than they win?!

mshyder
on April 10, 2013, 14:48 GMT

Someone needs to tell Mr. Qasim that to achieve his goal.s most importantly he needs to be fair and unbiased. His decisions should not depend on relationships, friendships and contacts. Unfortunately it is not so otherwise he would not be selecting likes of Imran Farhat, Faisal Iqbal, Shoaib Malik and Kamran Akmal, and giving chances to genuinely deserving candidates.

on April 10, 2013, 14:36 GMT

U should not expect a quality back-up of youngsters, when u have rotated same dozen of non-performing players & cycling them again & again instead of giving chance to younger players.Even then not mentioning players like nasir jamshed, rahat ali, ahmad shahzad, etc who r trying to get their feet into intl. side must be harsh on them.

on April 10, 2013, 14:00 GMT

Sami aslam could be a future opener as he recently got back to back centuries for the under-19 team. He is a great talent.

on April 10, 2013, 13:38 GMT

When the team is in transition phase, I think the competition for place in team would be more and hence there would be some people who are pushing others for their place in the side. I think it is a lame excuse by the selectors though I respect Iqbal Qasim for his services but the selection culture and the influences in selection are same as India in particular.

Recently there has been a lot of pressure from Karachi side and I think that's why Shahid Afridi was able to make a comeback though his performance as bowler is very mediocre for some time now.

They need to include Shahzab Hasan, Haris Sohail, Umar Akmal in ODIs and let's say good bye to oldies Misbah and Younis. When we can go for test in SA with M. Yousuf not in the team (he was available i believe). Then we can survive without Misbah and Younis in ODIs, in fact might be better off.

* should get immediate replacement for WC 2015, except Ajmal, others will be burden and shouldn't be part of WC 2015.

Hafeez should be given the leadership for WC and Irfan might be a problem if PK plans for longer term. Hope PCB can build a strong team for future.

xylofon
on April 10, 2013, 13:09 GMT

Cant belive Nasir Jamshed isnt mentioned in the article. And there are new people like Hammad Azam that havent been tried properly if at all. Babar Azam could be the batting opener prospect for the next 15 years, in my mind the best pakistani batsman in a long long time as far as test & ODI is concerned.

yasser211
on April 10, 2013, 13:09 GMT

Enough of this "Transition" phase. The team has been in a constant transition since the 2003 world cup. The board always has a knee jerk reaction after every world cup and discards the biggest names in Pakistan cricket. Who could have imagined that players like Afridi and Hafeez would one day be captaining the Pakistan side.

S.Kamran.Ali
on April 10, 2013, 12:52 GMT

I think Pakistan should try haris sohail, umer amin, hamad azam & sadaf hussain they all ready to play international cricket.
Good Luck to team Pakistan!

on April 10, 2013, 12:51 GMT

well he is right about quality in our domestic circuit....v need a system at grass root levela nd invest in the juniorss...this has never happpneed in pakistan and doesnt luk like happeniing in the near future....palyers just paly cricket because of their passion...no one is realyy wiling to take it as a profession at the junior lavel altough v have heeps heeps of talent even in children playing in streets ot sst home...!!!

fah4
on April 10, 2013, 12:35 GMT

Iqbal Qasim is absolutely wrong in saying they don't have a quality pool of reserve players. Mr. Qasim how you know the quality of the player without giving him any chance. The squad is almost same for all five ODI's they played in SA. Youngsters have no chance to show their talent.

The new members who get selected warm the benches and see their seniors fail before they are thrown out of the side without giving them chance for which they got selected.

Any youngster should get a run into the team before he was thrown. He says Harris Sohail is the future prospect he never play any international. Asad Shafiq and Umar Akmal have shown potential but they are yet to win a permanent place in the side. How they do it without getting any chance to play? Umar Akmal should be made permanent wicket keeper in shorter format.People hate him because his brothers failure.he must be given a run as Batsman wicket keeper in future.

Daveptee
on April 10, 2013, 12:34 GMT

Bowling,especially fast bowling will never be a problem since Pak have the maximum talent in that area.They can benefit from the expertise of greats like Ws and Imran and Qadir/Saqlain/Mushy to mould the bowlers.
Batsmen need to be developed.....a lot of work to be done...also with fielding which has never been a forte !

on April 10, 2013, 12:30 GMT

I as a supporter of TEAM PAKISTAN had raised this issue few years ago where it was obvious that there was dearth of talent in Pakistan cricket. However, we are always told there is no shortage of talent in Pakistan. If that is the case then the main reasons quality players are not being produced to represent TEAM PAKISTAN must have to do with our domestic cricket and internal politics. This needs to to be sorted out if we are going to compete with the giants such as South Africa, England, India and on current form less so with Sri Lanka, Australia, West Indies and New Zealand.There are some players who have been identified for the future and they must be persevered with regularly. These consist of Jamshed, Azhar Ali (future captain), Umar Akmal, Asad Shafiq, Ahmed Shehzad, Haris Sohail, Junaid Khan and Mohammed Irfan. To this can be added in the short term Hafeez, Misbah, Ajmal, Gul and Kamran / Sarfraz until quality replacements are found for them.

ArmChairUmpire
on April 10, 2013, 21:19 GMT

Like many who have posted here, I too believe that Mr. Qasim's comments are anemic. From afar, it appears that the team suffers from Inadequate international practice, Internal squabbles, Possible administrative interference, Weak leadership, Too many tweaks and an obvious Lack of commitment. IF Pakistan wishes to rank higher in the world of cricket, the batsmen need to keep their chins up and their heads and focus on winning the game. There are far too many wild shots being attempted and wild balls being bowled. Ajmal is the one disciplined bowler on the team; Irfan needs guidance. My advice: get a hold of Wasim Akram and Mohammad Yusuf as bowling and batting coaches respectively. Pay them reasonably well and Give them the respect they deserve. Finally, find some sensible ex-cricketers to manage the team. it is a shame to see such a brilliant cricketing nation playing like Zimbabwe. In the post-match comments, please learn from Misbah.

on April 10, 2013, 12:30 GMT

I as a supporter of TEAM PAKISTAN had raised this issue few years ago where it was obvious that there was dearth of talent in Pakistan cricket. However, we are always told there is no shortage of talent in Pakistan. If that is the case then the main reasons quality players are not being produced to represent TEAM PAKISTAN must have to do with our domestic cricket and internal politics. This needs to to be sorted out if we are going to compete with the giants such as South Africa, England, India and on current form less so with Sri Lanka, Australia, West Indies and New Zealand.There are some players who have been identified for the future and they must be persevered with regularly. These consist of Jamshed, Azhar Ali (future captain), Umar Akmal, Asad Shafiq, Ahmed Shehzad, Haris Sohail, Junaid Khan and Mohammed Irfan. To this can be added in the short term Hafeez, Misbah, Ajmal, Gul and Kamran / Sarfraz until quality replacements are found for them.

Daveptee
on April 10, 2013, 12:34 GMT

Bowling,especially fast bowling will never be a problem since Pak have the maximum talent in that area.They can benefit from the expertise of greats like Ws and Imran and Qadir/Saqlain/Mushy to mould the bowlers.
Batsmen need to be developed.....a lot of work to be done...also with fielding which has never been a forte !

fah4
on April 10, 2013, 12:35 GMT

Iqbal Qasim is absolutely wrong in saying they don't have a quality pool of reserve players. Mr. Qasim how you know the quality of the player without giving him any chance. The squad is almost same for all five ODI's they played in SA. Youngsters have no chance to show their talent.

The new members who get selected warm the benches and see their seniors fail before they are thrown out of the side without giving them chance for which they got selected.

Any youngster should get a run into the team before he was thrown. He says Harris Sohail is the future prospect he never play any international. Asad Shafiq and Umar Akmal have shown potential but they are yet to win a permanent place in the side. How they do it without getting any chance to play? Umar Akmal should be made permanent wicket keeper in shorter format.People hate him because his brothers failure.he must be given a run as Batsman wicket keeper in future.

on April 10, 2013, 12:51 GMT

well he is right about quality in our domestic circuit....v need a system at grass root levela nd invest in the juniorss...this has never happpneed in pakistan and doesnt luk like happeniing in the near future....palyers just paly cricket because of their passion...no one is realyy wiling to take it as a profession at the junior lavel altough v have heeps heeps of talent even in children playing in streets ot sst home...!!!

S.Kamran.Ali
on April 10, 2013, 12:52 GMT

I think Pakistan should try haris sohail, umer amin, hamad azam & sadaf hussain they all ready to play international cricket.
Good Luck to team Pakistan!

yasser211
on April 10, 2013, 13:09 GMT

Enough of this "Transition" phase. The team has been in a constant transition since the 2003 world cup. The board always has a knee jerk reaction after every world cup and discards the biggest names in Pakistan cricket. Who could have imagined that players like Afridi and Hafeez would one day be captaining the Pakistan side.

xylofon
on April 10, 2013, 13:09 GMT

Cant belive Nasir Jamshed isnt mentioned in the article. And there are new people like Hammad Azam that havent been tried properly if at all. Babar Azam could be the batting opener prospect for the next 15 years, in my mind the best pakistani batsman in a long long time as far as test & ODI is concerned.

* should get immediate replacement for WC 2015, except Ajmal, others will be burden and shouldn't be part of WC 2015.

Hafeez should be given the leadership for WC and Irfan might be a problem if PK plans for longer term. Hope PCB can build a strong team for future.

on April 10, 2013, 13:38 GMT

When the team is in transition phase, I think the competition for place in team would be more and hence there would be some people who are pushing others for their place in the side. I think it is a lame excuse by the selectors though I respect Iqbal Qasim for his services but the selection culture and the influences in selection are same as India in particular.

Recently there has been a lot of pressure from Karachi side and I think that's why Shahid Afridi was able to make a comeback though his performance as bowler is very mediocre for some time now.

They need to include Shahzab Hasan, Haris Sohail, Umar Akmal in ODIs and let's say good bye to oldies Misbah and Younis. When we can go for test in SA with M. Yousuf not in the team (he was available i believe). Then we can survive without Misbah and Younis in ODIs, in fact might be better off.

on April 10, 2013, 14:00 GMT

Sami aslam could be a future opener as he recently got back to back centuries for the under-19 team. He is a great talent.